It was fair to wonder if the future would ever come for Joey Bart and the San Francisco Giants.
He was regarded as their Catcher of the Future, the heir to Buster Posey behind the plate. However, Bart simply did not hit at all, leading the Giants to send him back to Triple-A at the beginning of June. At the time, Bart had a .156/.296/.300 with 49 strikeouts in 108 plate appearances, looking completely overmatched at the major league level. His struggles were bad enough that Curt Casali took over the starting role and they acquired Austin Wynns as a veteran backup.
Joey Bart proving he belongs with San Francisco Giants
The Giants had regarded Bart’s demotion as an opportunity for him to find success. They wanted him to make some adjustments to his swing and as a mental reset. The hope was that, when he was ready to return to San Francisco, he would be able to live up to expectations.
That has been the case. Bart has hit the ground running and has not stopped, posting a .314/.344/.523 batting line in his 90 plate appearances since being recalled, hitting five homers and three doubles. That is a lot closer to the type of production that the Giants had been hoping for at the start of the year.
Some concerns remain. While Bart has been producing, he has just four walks while striking out 28 times in those 90 plate appearances. His 31.1% strikeout rate may be an improvement from the 45.4% mark he had prior to being sent back to Triple-A, but it is still well above league average. With that high strikeout rate added to a below average walk rate, Bart’s success could be an aberration.
Nonetheless, that reason for hope persists. Bart has been hitting the ball better than he had at any point in time in his major league career to this point even if it would seem regression will strike. If these adjustments continue, and he can improve his contact rates further, Bart could be the catcher the Giants had hoped for.
Joey Bart was on his way to becoming a bust for the San Francisco Giants. That may have changed with that brief stint in the minors.